ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Navy (11-6, 6-6 Patriot League) scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning of game two to come from behind and beat Bucknell (7-16, 7-11 Patriot League), 6-5, to split the Saturday doubleheader after the Bison took game one in extra innings, 4-2, at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.
 
Nico Valdez (Jr., Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) finished the day going 3-for-6 with a pair of RBIs while Logan Keller (Fr., Longwood, Fla.) also drove in two runs on a pair of hits. For the day, the Midshipmen had five players with at least two hits.
 
"Really good college baseball games today," head coach Paul Kostacopoulos said. "The first game was a grinder. We kept battling back, kept getting chances and we just did not get the big hit. I give the guys credit, they came back – and I felt like we were behind all day – but we were able to come back and get a couple of runs in the eighth inning of game two. Our relief pitching was really good in the second game with Colin Jones and Nolan Jorgenson. They kept getting out of jams and giving us a chance and we snuck through the cracks in the second game.
 
"We keep going and give ourselves chances to win," Kostacopoulos mentioned about his team's resiliency. "I have said this before, you are not always going to break through and win the game, but at the same time, if you keep giving yourself chances you are going to come away with a couple, like today."
 
Bucknell 4, Navy 2 (Nine Innings)
 
To start the day, Navy and Bucknell played through scoreless first and second innings before the Bison struck first in the top of the third inning after a pair of hits in the frame helped a run come in to score.
 
The Midshipmen were held to just one hit through the first four innings of play and then in the fifth inning, Navy tied the score, 1-1. Alex Smith (So., Laguna Hills, Calif.) started the stanza with a single back up the middle and then Valdez worked a walk to place two runners on base. Still, with no outs in the inning, Eduardo Diaz (Fr., Miami, Fla.) laid down a sacrifice bunt but the Bison threw the ball away and allowed Alex Smith to come in to score.
 
Navy tried to hedge ahead in the fifth inning with another run but Valdez was tagged out in a rundown coming home and then the Bison retired the next two in order to get out of the jam.
 
Neither team could push across another run late in the seven-inning game to extend the contest into extra innings. In the ninth inning, Bucknell scored three runs on two hits to take a 4-1 lead.
 
In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Midshipmen did not go away quietly. With one out in the inning, Navy placed runners on the corners and Dalton Jackson (Jr., Chesapeake, Va.), brought home Nick Burch (So., Hollywood, Md.) with a sacrifice fly. The Midshipmen tried to work their way back into the game as they loaded the with two outs in the inning, but Navy was unable to push across another run as Bucknell took game one in a 4-2 decision.
 
Trey Braithwaite (Sr., Winchester, Va.) suffered the loss after allowing three runs on two hits and four walks in 3-1/3 innings of relief. In the start, Tommy Goodridge (Sr., San Diego, Calif.) went 5-1/3 innings after allowing one run on six hits.
 
Anthony Casciola (1-1) tossed 3-2/3 innings for the Bison in the win after surrendering a run on four hits.
 
Navy 6, Bucknell 5
 
Following a scoreless opening frame in the second half of the doubleheader, the two teams traded runs in the second inning to keep the game tied. After Bucknell took the lead, Christian Policelli (Jr., Walkersville, Md.) started the bottom of the second inning with a single out to centerfield and he moved up to third base after a wild pitch and a flyout. With one out in the inning, Alex Smith drove in Policelli with a groundout.
 
Bucknell pushed across three runs in the fourth inning after a Jacob Corson three-run home run to grab a 4-1 advantage. The Midshipmen answered back with a run in the bottom half of the inning after Valdez singled out right-center field to plate Keller – who reached on a one-out double.
 
With the 4-2 lead, the Bison tacked on another run in the fifth inning to regain their three-run edge. Navy continued to answer the Bucknell's scoring frames as Keller drove in two runs on a two-out, two-RBI single to bring the Midshipmen within a run after five innings of play.
 
Both bullpens settled into the contest and put up zeros in the sixth and seventh innings. Down to its final six outs and trailing by a run, Navy sent eight batters to the plate in the eighth inning to score two runs on a hit. After Bucknell retired the first batter of the inning, Keller reached on a walk and Alex Smith was hit by a pitch. Valdez drove in his third run of the day to tie the game at five with a single to left field bringing in Keller. The Midshipmen loaded the bases with one out and Jackson drove in the go-ahead run for Navy on a sacrifice fly to centerfield field as Navy took a 6-5 lead on Jackson's second RBI of the day.
 
The Midshipmen looked to add on to its lead in the eighth inning but left the bases loaded and they took the one-run lead into the final inning.
 
Nolan Jorgenson (Fr., Eastvale, Calif.) worked a perfect ninth inning and threw just seven pitches to retire the Bison and secure the 6-5 win in game two to split the Saturday doubleheader.
 
Jorgenson (1-0) threw the final 2-2/3 innings and did not allow a hit or a run to secure his first collegiate victory. Reece Early (So., Reisterstown, Md.) pitched 4-2/3 innings in the start and allowed five runs on nine hits.
 
Austin Odell (0-2) suffered the loss for Bucknell after allowing two runs on a hit and a walk in 1-2/3 innings out of the bullpen.
 
The Midshipmen and Bison cap off the three-game series on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. in Lewisburg, Pa.